CAR NEWS

Daniel Ricciardo with McLaren marked a great victory at the Italian F1 GP in Monza, after a frantic race with a major accident that forced the two championship contenders Hamilton (Mercedes) and Verstappen (Red  Bull) to retire. Ricciardo led the race from starting to finish, after a very good start when he passed Verstappen. Second place for the other McLaren with Norris. Third was Bottas, able to recover from the last  positions, showing the new Mercedes engine is working definitely better.

The 2021 Championship is open than ever, but F1 teams are almost ready for the 2022 seasons. Last week Valtteri Bottas announced he is leaving Mercedes to join Alfa Romeo, after Raikkonen announced he is retiring. The following day Mercedes gave the long awaited news: from next season George Russell will be Lewis Hamilton’s teammate. Alex Albon will return to F1 and he will replace Russell on Williams’s team. All confirmed- at the moment- the other drivers in the different teams. 

The only unknown situation is about Giovinazzi: Alfa Romeo has not yet confirmed his contract. 

You can meet Bryan Circosta at Radnor Concours in Malvern, PA, on Sunday September 12th. He is an Ambassador for the event, and there is a group of "non-red" Ferrari... Don't miss this opportunity!

Kimi Raikkonen, The Iceman, will retire at the end of 2021 F1 Championship. He started with Sauber, then moved to McLaren ending finally in Ferrari where he won the championship in 2007. In 2010 he took a hiatus from the F1 rallying and racing in Formula Nascar. He then returned in F1 with Lotus and after his new return to Ferrari he scored his biggest accomplishment in his New F1 adventure - till now - winning  the 2018 United States Grand Prix with the Scuderia. 

He became an Alfa Romeo the following season, switching seats with Charles LeClerc, Raikkonen has started 344 Grands Prix to date, with 21 wins, 103 podiums, and 18 pole positions. 

The dutch F1 weekend started as it finished. The dutch driver Verstappen (Red Bull) conquered the pole position on Saturday and celebrated the victory on Sunday on a all orange celebration. Hamilton (Mercedes) arrived 2nd with the fastest lap, conquering a precious extra point for the final race the championship. The dutch driver now lead the standing with 224,5 points, Hamilton is only 3 points behind. Bottas (Mercedes) was 3rd, 4th place for Gasly (Alpha Tauri), 5th Leclerc on Ferrari.

On  Saturday, Sept. 18, around 20 Ferraris and other super sporty cars will participate at the Ferrari Cruise-In to benefit The Arthritis Foundation in the James Free Jewelers parking lot in Kettering, Ohio, thanks to a special event organized by James Free Jewelers and the Ferrari Club of America.

Admission will be free, but there will be raffle tickets sold to win the chance of one-hour open-road ride in a Ferrari Testarossa or a half-hour race-like ride in an Aston Martin.

The rain was the real winner on Sunday in Belgium. After almost four hours waiting and only 3 laps raced, FIA stopped for good the F1 GP at Spa. They awarded the winners with half points. The final standing was the copy of the Saturday pole. Verstappen (Red Bull) won the race. Second place and first podium ever with his Williams for Russell. Third place for Hamilton (Mercedes). In the general standing Hamilton leads by 3 points over Verstappen (202.5 vs 199.5). Next week appointment in Holland.

The cars’ auctions during Monterey Car Week and their result say the market of exotic and luxury used cars is stronger than ever. Five companies brought in a total of $343 million, up 37% over the 2019 same event. 2021 vehicle average sale price was $428,004 ($334,114 in 2019). This year the record was for  a 1995 McLaren F1 Coupe sold for $20.5 million by Gooding & Co. Second highest price was for a 1959 Ferrari 250 California LWB  Competizione Spider sold for $10.8 million at the same sale. 

The #7 Toyota GR010-Hybrid driven by Conway, Kobayashi and Lopez won the 24  Hours of Le Mans 2021 race, finishing ahead of the #8 sister car with  Sebastien Buemi. The winning trio experienced also a horrible  moment when Kamui Kobayashi slid off the track. At the end, the Toyota  #7 team secured a stunning win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans on Sunday  afternoon after so many near misses.  

When it was new, the Ferrari Enzo costed more or less $650,000, but  now someone  paid $3.8 million for this special 2003 example sold by  Legendary Motor Car Company, setting a new record in the used Enzo  market. What makes  this Enzo so special is that it's painted in a rare  Rosso Scuderia finish, the same color used by Ferrari's F1 team at the  time. Last year, a Ferrari Enzo was sold for $2.64 million, setting a  new auction record at the time. Now a new record has been set.  

While the Monterey cars week was cooling down, the experts celebrated  the  final winner of the 2021 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance picking among  dozens of other a 1938 Mercedes Benz 540K Autobahnkurier. Pebble Beach  Concours d’Elegance, among the world’s Concours, is one of the  big  three, the other two being the original Concours d’Elegance Chantilly  Richard Mille and the other one is Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este at  Lake Como in Italy. 

The video is all over the Internet: you can see a yellow Ferrari SF90 Stradale falling off the delivery truck and  crushing down. Video is from Brazil. The lift failed to lower the SF90 down to the ground properly, and gravity did what normally it does. The car was ordered by Cimed Group CEO (a health care service provider in Brazil) and came with some tailor made options. It was ordered through the local Ferrari dealership and given the high taxes in Brazil the price was about 1.5 million USD. 

Ferrari  has surged back to second-quarter growth, posting a  206-million-euro ($245 million) profit fort last quarter. Last year in  the middle of the  pandemic, the company registered only 9 million euros  last year, when the company was forced to shut production for seven  weeks. But last quarter, till June 2021, there was also an improvement  over the 184-million-euro profit posted in the same period of 2019,  before the  pandemic. 

Interim CEO John Elkann said June marked a  record in orders at  the luxury carmaker, noting that general trends  show the age of new Ferrari buyers is going down while the number of  women placing orders doubled.

Shipments nearly doubled in the quarter to 2,685, along with net revenues, which surged to 1.03 billion euros from 571 billion euros a year earlier.  That was also an improvement of 5% over the same period in pre-pandemic  2019.

Monterey car week is on. After the 2020 forced stop, classic and unique cars are taking to streets, golf courses, parks for the classic appointment. Monterey Car Week will feature nearly 30 car events including car shows, races, auctions, arts and lectures and will end with the world famous Pebble Beach concourse d’elegance, on August 15th, for its 70th year. Due to the Covid19 safety protocol most of the events will follow special rules. Just few appointments have been postponed to next summer.

After a horribly messy start, with multiple crushes, six cars immediately out, a long stop and a sudden weather change, the F1 GP of Hungary, saw  - last Sunday - a debutant winner in Esteban Ocon with his Alpine. Hamilton (Mercedes) who started first finished third, after a long battle with a brilliant Alonso. The Briton driver was 14th  after some  bad decisions on tyres changing after the stop of the race.  Second place for Vettel (Aston Martin). Fourth place for Sainz (Ferrari).

But after the race the last twist: Vettel disqualified because of absence of fuel for the standard test. So Hamilton became 2nd and Sainz 3rd. The other Ferrari driver - Leclerc - was forced to retire, after the start's crash. Verstappen  suffered major damages during the  same accident and wasn't able to recover many positions, finishing 10th. Hamilton leads now the championship by 8 points as F1 heads into the summer break. Next appointment will be in  Belgium, on August, Sunday the 29th. 

Pier Guidi, Come Ledogar and Nicklas Nielsen won the 24H at Spa, driving the  #51 Ferrari 488 GT3 and leading most of the race by 3.978 seconds ahead of #32 Audi R8 LMS GT3 of Vanthoor, Charles Weerts and Kelvin van der Linde. Pier Guidi was able to extend the lead over the remaining laps to five seconds, before crossing the line 3.9s ahead. It marks the first win for a Ferrari in the Spa 24 Hours in the GT3 era and the  Scuderia's first since 2004, as well as the brand's fourth victory overall.

At the start of the race there was a huge crush. Aitken's Emil Frey Lamborghini was involved in a four-car accident at the top of Eau Rou. 

Epic  Games - creator of the multi awarded and very popular video game  Fortnite - is partnering with Ferrari to bring one of the carmaker’s  legendary sports cars to his game. The two companies announced the  agreement this week. Fortnite is already well-known for its multi  collaboration with celebrities and luxury brands, but the Ferrari coming  to the game, the 296 GTB hybrid sports car, is the first licensed car  to appear in the hugely popular battle royal shooter. 

Cars have become a  staple of the game since they were added but until now, they’ve all  been generic representations of different kinds of cars, such as a  sedan, a pickup truck, and yes, even a sports car. Epic says the Ferrari  will play like other vehicles in Fortnite but will sound like what you’d hear from the real car. 

Say hello to the new 2022 F1 car. Following the new FIA directions, the  new racing car will have a relatively simpler design. Thanks to this, the front wing and nose design will be neutral and less complex. Other  differences are about the wheels. Instead of the 13-inch rims of the  current car, the 2022-spec F1 car will roll on 18-inch wheels with  low-profile rubber. The new design of the rear wing will also help draw  the dirty air coming off the car. 

The new wing retains the Drag  Reduction System (DRS) moveable flap from the current cars. Another   important update in the 2022 car is the re-introduction of ‘ground   effect’ aero, which was first seen in F1 cars in the 1970s but was   banned in the early 80s.  

Charles  Leclerc (Ferrari) was selected as Driver the Day in Silverstone by  supporters and experts thanks to his outstanding performance. He  started as fourth, and he led almost every lap of the race, despite  some engine issues along the way from his Ferrari. Only at the very end  he couldn't hold off Lewis Hamilton and his powerful car. Charles Leclerc arrived second and won the title “driver of the day” with a  large majority of  preferences.  

British F1 GP in Silverstone was won by Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) after 52 laps but the race was marked 51 laps before, when the British driver collided with Verstappen causing a massive crush for his Red Bull (and luckily no physical consequences). Hamilton received 10 seconds penalty. Leclerc (Ferrari) lead the race till the very end when  Hamilton’s Mercedes was too fast to resist. Bottas (Mercedes) arrived third. Now the gap Verstappen-Hamilton is 8 points, and the Dutch is still leader.  

Ferrari has just confirmed they will be part of the Les Mans Hypercar  championship in 2023. The Ferrari LMH prototypes will be entered under  the Ferrari-AF Corse banner in "a collaborative effort" between the team and the manufacturer's Competizioni GT  department, which is masterminding the new program. Ferrari continues to  develop his next gen hypercar using LaFerrari. At the same time the brand denied any possible involvement of moto champion Valentino Rossi for top level Les Mans races . 

This Saturday at 11.30 EDT and this Sunday (usual time) the new "double race" format for the British F1 GP, while qualifications will be on Friday. But always in these days the Australian Grand Prix has been  removed from the Formula One calendar for the second year in a row. F1 organizers decided to cancel the 2021 race due to new Australian  stricter travel restrictions aimed at stopping the spread of the new  Delta coronavirus variant. 

2021 race was already postponed from its usual time in March as the season opener, to November because of coronavirus-related restrictions. Now the new decision to completely  delete the appointment.  

Ferrari has just expanded its own business from luxury and racing cars to  high fashion system. Ferrari is now offering apparel with sporty and futuristic accent, designed by diversification creative director Rocco Iannone, who gained experience in great brands like Dolce & Gabbana and Giorgio Armani. The collection expanded beyond the branded jackets, T-shirts and hats that have long been sported by Ferrari fans. Instead, there were minimal sneakers, bold outerwear and Prancing Horse jewellery.

Verstappen (Red Bull) won the second GP in Australia also, leading from the  start. Second was Bottas on Mercedes, third place for Norris (McLaren) after a  bald battle with Hamilton (Mercedes) who finished fourth also because a huge car damage. Good race for the Ferrari team with Sainz arrived 5th and Leclerc arrived 8th. The second race in Austria saw a lot of duels, incidents and 6 drivers were affected by penalties. Among  many, under penalties also Norris and Perez.

Ferrari unveiled last week the new plug-in hybrid car from its production. The 296 GTB Ferrari is the third hybrid to go into series. It follows the SF 90 Stradale in  2019 and a convertible version, the SF90 Spider, last year. The  two-seater will cost 269,000 euros ($321,000), reaching 302,000 euros   for it "Assetto Fiorano" high-performance version. It will have a top  speed over 330 km per hour (205 mph).  

A perfect start and a perfect race, led Verstappen (Red Bull) to his fourth F1 victory this year. The dutch pilot conquered the first GP in Austria in this season. Hamilton (Mercedes) was second. Third place for the other Mercedes pilot, Bottas. Perez (Red Bull) was fourth. Sixth and  seventh place for thw Ferrari’s duo Sainz and Leclerc. It was a race with a lot of duels but only in the center and lower part of the  standing. 

Gasly (Alpha Tauri) and Russell (Williams) were forced to  retire, after a good qualification and a good first part of the race. Next week another race on this track.  

Ferrari signed with Amazon Web Services (AWS) as its official  cloud service data provider for its road cars department, GT  Competitions, the Ferrari  Challenge, and the Formula One (F1) team. The agreement is also about to create a digital fan engagement platform for Ferrari enthusiast, offering exclusive and personalized content via a mobile app. With this, Ferrari aims to strengthen its relationship with millions of fans around the world.  

Verstappen  (Red Bull) won the French GP after a race long battle with Hamilton  (Mercedes). Third place for Perez (Red Bull). After him - as  fourth- the other Mercedes with Bottas. All the teams struggled with  the tires again. Great race for both the McLarens with Norris and  Ricciardo (fifth and sixth). Best result of the season for the rumored  new 2022 Mercedes second pilot, Russell (12th in Williams). No points  for Ferrari this Sunday, Sainz was 11th, Leclerc 16th. 

In a decade where cars' production will mean more and more about electric and electronic system, Ferrari has just picked one of the most named manager in the world of electronics as his new CEO. After months of waiting, Ferrari just announced the decision of hiring Benedetto Vigna, 52, keeping him away from his current  position as head of the sensors group at semiconductor firm STMicroelectronics. John Elkann remains head chairman. Vigna will cover the position starting from September 1st. 

What  happens if you put together a Jeep and a Ferrari? In the next months maybe we can think about the new Prancing Horse SUV. Right now the only image is an old experiment's result from 1969. Nevada businessman Bill Harrah requested that kind of car to Enzo Ferrari in  person and he refused. Harrah ended up to build his own car, combining a  1969 Ferrari 365GT with a 1969 Jeep Wagoneer. 

Among the amateurs the car is known as "Jerrari". The car now is looking for a new owner on Classic Driver. The odometer marks less than 10 thousand miles.  

Forget about qualifications and pole. The Sunday F1 Gp in Baku was completely another story. It started with Leclerc (Ferrari, P1),  Hamilton (Mercedes, P2) and Verstappen (Red Bull, P3). It ended with  with a completely different podium. Perez (Red Bull) won, amazing second  place for Vettel (Aston Martin), third place for Gasly (Alpha Tauri).  Verstappen crashed the car after leading the race for a while. Hamilton  went out one lap before the end.

Leclerc finished fourth. Thanks to the  fastest lap, Verstappen gained 1 point and now he leads the general  standing with 4 points more than Hamilton.  

Sir  Elton John’s vintage 1972 Ferrari Daytona 365GTB/4 Will roll across the  Silverstone auction this past weekend. The projected value is said to  be between $620,000-$700,000. In the next days we will know if the the  car was sold and how much was the final price. It wouldn’t be too  surprising to see the vintage Ferrari go for even more money. This  particular version of Ferrari was made in only 158 examples.

Despite how it ended up (with Leclerc first in pole and then forced to  retire) Ferrari were so competitive at Monaco. According to some   experts, it was because of the "super suspension" of the Italians.  Maranello team redesigned the system in particular for the Monaco race.  But experts say it could be beneficial in more circuits but maybe in a different and less effective way. Ferrari are currently fourth in the  world championship with just two points from the McLaren team. 

In a few days, a white 1988 Ferrari Testarossa with less than 25,000  miles on the clock will be offered in auction at the Silverstone Ferrari  sale, June 5th. The car happened to be sold new in Japan.  Approaching the 40-year mark, Ferrari Testarossa cars are increasing  interest among Ferrari lovers.

Helio Castroneves won his fourth career Indy 500 in a nail-biting finish, being able to beat Alex Palau in the very last lap of the race. Castroneves previously won the 500 in 2001, 2002, 2009. The  part time driver joined Meyer Shank Racing last November. Castroneves  won the iconic race in front of at least 135,000 people, the largest crowd to watch a sports event since pandemic began. Castroneves joins A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears (lastly in 1991) as  the race’s only four-time winners.

The dream lasted less then 24 hours. The Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc’s  chances of winning his home race from pole position at the Monaco Grand Prix went away when the team realized there was still a problem in his  car. The Monaco Montecarlo born driver crashed the car during the  qualification, right after gaining the pole. 

Ferrari team decided to not  substitute the car. In that case Leclerc would have started from the  box. In a race like the Monaco one, it was meaning having no chances to  win. But Ferrari gets anyway the second place with Carlos Sainz... 

Verstappen (Red Bull) won his first GP in Monaco, while Carlos Sainz was second  for Ferrari and McLaren’s Lando Norris a superb third, his first podium finish in the principality. The race went quite smooth for the winner,  after he gained the pole position when Leclerc was forced to retire  before the Sunday race. Now the dutch driver has 4 points more than the seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton. 

Despite his seventh final  position, the Mercedes driver was able to gain one point more, thanks to the fastest lap. It was worse for his teammate Bottas, forced to retire after a mechanical failure during a pit-stop. 

While the other teammates were training, last week the soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, from the Italian team Juventus, was visiting Ferrari factory in Maranello. He had 3 important missions: he  bought a new very exclusive Ferrari, the Ferrari Monza; he met withFerrari F1 drivers Leclerc and Sainz; and he also tried the Maranello circuit. Ferrari Monza is a very special car you can buy only if you receive a special invitation from Ferrari. This one-seat car is valued around $ 1.95 million.

Following the new Covid-19 traveling restrictions in Turkey, F1 will be not  allowed to race there on June 11-13. That weekend will now remain free, with the French Grand Prix moving a week earlier than originally planned   to June 18-20 and a second race in Austria – the Styrian Grand Prix –  added to the calendar on June 25-27. That Turkey GP cancellation,  will create a new France-Styria-Austria triple header, with the Austrian Grand Prix staying in its original July 2-4 slot. 

All tickets already sold to the French Grand Prix are valid for the earlier date. 

F1 is  looking for an American driver. Greg Maffei, ceo of the Liberty  Media,  owner of F1, said the addition of the Miami GP and the confirmation of  the GP in Austin are just the first steps to consolidate the image of  the fastest car races. In USA there is a growing interest about the F1 thanks also the Netflix show “Drive to Survive”,  that has having a great audience in the States. Having also a great American driver in  one of the F1 cars could be the ultimate game changer factor. 

Thanks  to a perfect pit-stop’s strategy, and a brilliant attack during the  Spanish F1  GP Hamilton (Mercedes) won his third in four races, despite  losing the lead to Verstappen (Red Bull) at the first corner. The dutch  driver was second with the fastest lap and Bottas (Mercedes) arrived  third. Great fourth places for Leclerc with Ferrari. Fifth place for  Perez, the other Reb Bull driver. Sainz with the second Ferrari was  seventh.

Not only cars. Ferrari has decided to play giving fans a little bit of Prancing Horse also when it comes with to fashion. Maranello company is ready to unveil its new and first luxury men’s, women’s and  children’s apparel collection in June.The Elkann-Agnelli family holding Exor, which owns Ferrari, plans to stage a runway show that will be held directly in Maranello, Italy, where the Ferrari brand is headquartered, on June 13th. Ferrari presented this new business as a new “lifestyle project”.

Hamilton (Mercedes) won Portugal GP and extended the lead over Verstappen (Red Bull) in general standing (25-18). The dutch driver was 2nd and 3rd place for Bottas (Mercedes). The race was decided by two overtakes from Hamilton against these two drivers. Perez (Red Bull) was first for a while after some pit stops but at the end he arrived 4th; 6th and 11th place for Leclerc and Sainz with their Ferrari. Good race for McLaren team, especially for Ricciardo able to recover from 16th place to 9th.

Auction  company RM Sotheby’s is planning to have at least four incredible and unique Ferraris at its incoming special sale in Milan, Italy, on June 14-15.  The sale is taking place at the Palazzo Serbelloni. At the center of  the auction - for a starting price around $2.4 million - will be the 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB that French screenwriter Roger Vadim purchased new and later passed to  his then wife, the famous American actress Jane Fonda. 

The light blue car, chassis No. 08641, is a long nose and torque   tube example. Vadim bought it on June 15, 1966, and three months later  transferred the registration to Fonda. After Fonda, the owners have been   all from French. 

The Japanese F1 Grand Prix will be hosted from the Suzuka circuit until at  least the end of the 2024 season after Formula One and circuit owners  announced a three-year contract extension on Saturday. The figure of  eight track in Mie Prefecture first hosted a Formula One race in 1987   and has provided the final and decisive race for 11 drivers' championships.

Now it is official. F1 will double races in USA, and Miami will be the  second American circuit along with the historic circuit of Austin.  Beginning from late spring of 2022 Miami Gardens will feature a race of the biggest and most spectacular cars’ championship, as part of a new  10-year deal. The circuit - picked among dozens of different projects - will  be build all around on the car parks and roads surrounding the Hard  Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. 

It will be a semi a semi-permanent track, 5.41 kilometer long with 19 corners and turns, up to three DRS zones with a top speed of about 200 mph. The "MiamiF1" hashtag went quickly viral yesterday on  all the social media after the official FIA announcement.    

Thanks to a perfect start and a perfect race, Max Verstappen (Red Bull) won the Imola GP in Italy, while Lewis Hamilton finished 2nd with the fastest lap, and Lando Norris came in 3rd. Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz ended the race 4th and 5th. Race was spectacular with wet&dry conditions, a red flag with a suspension of the race after George Russell and Valtteri  Bottas crashed. Lewis Hamilton's made up from 9th to 2nd, and multiple other events, like spins and cars off  track.  

Ferrari organized a special event to remember and to celebrate the late Gianni Agnelli, who was born 1921 and who partnered the Prancing Horse company for many years. In with current government restrictions, Ferrari  Museums are closed to public. However, museum is offering two different free virtual live tours of the new ‘Gianni Agnelli and  Ferrari. The Elegance of the Legend’. Exhibition is held every day until Thursday, April 15th. Each tour lasts about 30 minutes (in Italian and English). 

In the three-week gap after season-opening, all F1 teams are studying and testing important upgrades for their cars. Most awaited upgrades are from Ferrari: they will bring first aerodynamic upgrade package to their home Grand Prix at Imola, Italy. Leclerc already tested the upgrades at Ferrari's simulator in Maranello. Sainz instead spent most of the time reviewing his Bahrain race trying to gain confidence with the new car. “Made in Italy” GP in Imola will be on April 16th-18th with no fans.

A unique Ferrari 1955 250 Europa GT, with 22,000 miles on the ticker is expected to fetch between $2.2 million and $2.6 million at the auction, which runs May 3rd through 7th, at Gooding & Co’s Geared online sale. The first owner for an array of custom touches that  distinguish this particular Europa GT from the 43 others in existence.  Chassis 0413 GT features a distinctive colorway of black over orange  leather that highlights the remarkable Pininfarina coachwork. 

It also features a special instrument arrangement and an unconventional taillight treatment. Under the hood the two-door coupe packs a 3.0-liter Colombo-derived V-12 engine that’s good for around 217 horses, with zero to 60 mph time of 6.8 seconds and a top speed of 143 mph. 

More than hundred Ferrari F1 team members have already received the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid 19 vaccine, taking a important step on fighting the spreading of the disease. Mercedes F1 team also decided to take advantage of Bahrain’s vaccination offer. Other UK based F1 teams follow the British vaccine rollout. That means that for the  next F1 race in Imola, Italy, the F1 circuit will be largely protected.

Ferrari F1 team decided to cover his personnel thanks to the  Bahrain offer, after consulting with the Italian health system, trying to ease the regional health organization. 

The second F1 race of this season will be on April 18th in Italy, few miles away from Ferrari factory. The new name of this GP, in  Imola, will be  "Made in Italy and Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix".  It will be a good moment for the Italian team to show everybody its  real potential. Ferrari went very well during the week before the first  race in Bahrain, with a definitely improved engine. 

The team finished  sixth with Leclerc and eighth with Sainz. “It’s  a nice start and a good  feeling and I am reasonably happy with the race today. I cannot be  extremely satisfied with P6, but at the end of the day we need to look  at where we were last year and it’s clear we have made good progress",  said Leclerc after the race. 

The seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) won the Bahrain  Grand Prix in the opening race of the F1 2021 season, defeating Max Verstappen (Red Bull) who arrived second after a thrilling final. Hamilton’s teammate Bottas was 3rd. Norris (McLaren) conquered the 4th position. Sergio Pérez did very well recovering in his Red Bull to finish 5th after started at the back after a  mechanical problem on the formation lap. 6th and 8th positions for Ferrari team with Leclerc and Sainz.  

With the new F1 Championship less than a week away, Netflix is warming up fans expectations releasing Drive to Survive 3. The last 2 series showedF1 in all its particular protagonists. Season 3 is about the 2020 F1 season, with many ups and downs, cancellations, fears about the covid emergency, and finally real duels on the circuits. Netflix released last Friday the whole new series. F1 fans can experience again the 2020 season  before the first 2021 F1 race in Bahrain, on Sunday March 28th.

A 1996 Ferrari F50 was stolen in 2003 in Italy and then found during an   inspection at the Peace Bridge in Buffalo, N.Y., on December 14, 2019.  Customs and Border Protection officers noticed some rivets on the VIN plate were covered with a black tar substance. The investigations have just finished and the results are now confirmed.

Ferrari’s records show the sports car was stolen from a hotel  parking garage on March 30, 2003, just a month after an Italian man, bought it with his father and brother. And a Florida man, says he bought it online for $1.435 million in  September 2019 for his car collection. 

A simple but very effective trio of fins that have been directly incorporated into the diffuser area, in the car’s floor. That’s one of the most important news from the Ferrari SF21 for the 2021 F1 season. This solution - as from Motorsport experts - could prevent turbulent airflow off the rear tire from causing problems to the airflow passing over the floor. It seems like the new Ferrari  technology is a direct consequence from FIA’s new regulations (trimming 40mm the brake duct winglets). 

After three testing days in Bahrain, F1 circuit gained some truths about 2021 season: Red Bull team showed a very different pace, seeming now the fastest car. In the last day, Verstappen signed  an excellent time as first. Surprising 2nd position for Tsunoda with Alpha Tauri. Third place for Sainz with Ferrari, 4th Raikkonen (Alfa Romeo), 5th position for the seven times champion Hamilton and his Mercedes. Right after him Russel on Williams. 

After the first two days with a lot of red flags for many teams, the third day went smooth. First race will be on March 28th, always in Bahrain. 

The company Barrett Jackson will auction one of the most desirable vehicles in the world, a stunning red 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 - lot 1394 - during  the Scottsdale Auction at WestWorld of Scottsdale,  at the end of  March. Having passed through only a handful of  caretakers, the  matching-numbers 4-cam Ferrari is one of only 330 built  and has a heavily documented history from the day it left the factory  in Italy.  The car includes the rare original tool bag and  brochure. 

Fully restored, this particular vehicle (chassis #09677) has passed through only a handful of owners. I had a complete engine rebuild  at North Coast Exotics. 

Formula 1 is actively looking for new teams and also for new engine suppliers.  The situation has become more urgent last October, after Honda  announced  its intention to withdraw at the end of the 2021  season. Among those  most frequently tipped as possible entrants are  various of Volkswagen Group’s brands – usually Porsche and Audi – and  Hyundai Group, which includes KIA. Early this month, the VW group said  they are moving forward with their F1 project.  

Ferrari’s online ‘Team Launch’ on Friday saw the squad present their refreshed line-up of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, along with Matteo Binotto, the team manager. Asked about his expectations for the season ahead, Binotto replied: “Certainly last year was a big, big disappointment. We know that we cannot repeat such a bad result; we know that we need somehow to do better in 2021. Ferrari’s 2021 car, the SF21, will be presented on March 10th, two days before the start of pre-season testing.

A new online auction will begin on 1st March  on F1 Authentics - the official online F1 memorabilia store from England - featuring  some extremely rare F1 collectables. F1 Authentics Icons of F1 Auction will include more than 50 items celebrating 15 World Champions, with new items added daily. Items on the auction will include: a pair of signed Ferrari race boots from seven-time World Champion, Michael Schumacher and a 1994 replica of three-time World Champion Ayrton Senna's Williams race suit.

No more excuses: if your lifelong dream has always been driving a real F1 car, now you can do it. British company TrackDays is  now offering the opportunity to drive a Jordan EJ12 F1 car that was first piloted by Takuma Sato back in 2002. The Jordan is now situated at Bovingdon Airfield in Hertfordshire, England (few miles from  London), and there are three different experiences for customers to choose from. Price start around $1,200. You can spend around $5,000 if want an entire day experience.

The former F1 Ferrari pilot Sebastian Vettel has put his supercars  collection up for auction. The sale will be organized by UK-based car dealer Tom Hartley Jr. The experts believe expecting to raise more  than three million dollars. Vettel has decided to sell his entire  collection of eight cars includes five Ferraris, two Mercedes-Benz and a BMW. All the cars are like new. To be very precise, the Ferrari car LaFerrari is showing only 305 miles.

Roger Penske is one of the most famous auto circuit star. Now his ultra rare 2016 Ferrari F12 TdF is going to be on auction at Mecum Auction's Glendale event in March. With just 449 miles, this is one of just 799 examples produced. The car - a rosso corsa color - has $55,000 value in optionals. The normal value of this kind of cars in around  $620,000. Usually they reach easily $1million during an auction thanks their uniqueness. In US there are only around 200 cars that you can compare to this.

Stefano Domenicali, CEO of FIA, just confirmed that the organization is working hard to double F1 races in USA. Austin is already a confirmed date also  for this 2021 season. Since many years they are also talking about a  race in Miami, and all the official talks are about a city circuit  between Miami and Miami Beach (and back). 

Now Domenicali says Miami is not the only option. Las Vegas could offer the same advantages (another  possible  city circuit) offering also the possibility to attract many  fans from the West Coast, and especially from California. Meanwhile, FIA just confirmed Portugal (Portimao) as one of 2021 races.  

F1  superstar Lewis Hamilton has been the last driver to sign the new   contract with his team, Mercedes. The two parts reached an economic  agreement for one year, until the end of 2021, after rumors talked about  a possible multi year agreement.  

Year  2021 is going to be a record year for Ferrari. Despite numbers went   down for Ferrari production in 2020 - due to the pandemic emergency -   during the same time new orders hit the record levels. They are more  than 20% up  versus last year. They will cover  the entire production  capacity for 2021 and beyond. For that reason  Ferrari is going to add  more working places and is going to release a $  9,000  one-time extra bonus payment for its employees .  

F1 superstar Lewis Hamilton will be the last driver to sign the new   contract with his team, Mercedes. Rumors has been emerged in the last  days. The two parts seem having reached an economic agreement, now the  last details are about how long the new contract will last. With the  seven times world champion, Mercedes hope to reach a multi year  agreement.  

Cavallino restaurant owner Neri died last year. Cavallino was the Enzo Ferrari favorite restaurant in Modena. Now all Ferrari automobilia and memorabilia from restaurant will be on auction on February 6 at a special Ferrari Automobilia sale by Artcurial Motorcars. Among items, there are the engine and monocoque (separate lots) from the F1 412 T2 driven by Berger in 1995, pieces of bodywork from the 641 raced by Prost in 1990, an engine cover from a F-2002, and a 2005 season Schumacher helmet.

After 24 hours racing and mostly leading the competition, Wayne Taylor  Racing  team won its third consecutive Rolex 24 at Daytona, tying the  record held by Chip Ganassi Racing, its greatest challenger also during  this  last edition. Driver Filipe Albuquerque brought the No. 10 Acura of WTR to the checkered flag ahead of Kamui Kobayashi in the No. 48  Ally Cadillac. Third place for Harry  Tincknell in the No. 55 Mazda and Juan Pablo Montoya in the No. 60 Acura of Meyer Shank Racing.  

American  F1 team Haas started to work using Ferrari technicians and some  buildings very close to Ferrari in Maranello (Italy).  This is part of  the new agreement even though the Ferrari Manager Binotto has stressed  the two teams will work separately and no-one from  Haas will have any  access to the Ferrari area.

The Belgian-Dutch Maya Weug has been selected to become the first-ever  female student of the world-famous Ferrari Driver Academy. The  16-year-old girl born in Spain will now embark on the most significant  journey in her young racing career with a one-year contract at the  Academy and a full season in a Formula 4 championship certified by the FIA. 

After the new changes due to the still ongoing pandemic, the new  F1 2021 calendar will now start with the Bahrain GP on March 28. F1 will  then head to Imola, which wasn't on the original schedule but is added  after a successful return in 2020, on April 18. Although May 2 is a  'TBC' on  the calendar, Portugal's Portimao circuit is expected to host  the third race of the season. 

The calendar is setting for 23 total  appointments,  including Spain, Monaco, Azerbaijan, Canada, France,  Austria, UK,  Hungary, Belgium, Netherlands, again Italy, Russia,  Singapore, Japan,  USA, Mexico, Brasil, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Abu  Dhabi. Monaco, Azerbaijan and Canada could announce soon their renunciation.   

A  record entry list for the 59th Rolex 24 at Daytona was released  on Wednesday, with a record number of 50 teams, and among  them three  different Ferraris. Last year only 38 teams asked and were  admitted to  the qualification. This first part will be held next  weekend, from the  22th to the 24th of January. The official race is  scheduled for 30 and  31 of January.  

RM Sotheby's  Scottsdale sale on January 22 will host the auction of a unique Ferrari 375 America Coupe by Vignale.  It’s one of only three cars made  by the Turin studio with Vignale  transforming full-scale drawings into aluminum sculpture with his own  eyes. According to RM Sotheby's estimations, this car should be sold for  between $2,400,000 and $3,400,000.

Too  good to be destroyed, too perfect to be hidden. Ferrari company lost a  cause against the Italian Customs service “Agenzia delle dogane” and  now a perfect 1958 196/246s Ferrari will be part of the educational  material to help the future Customs service agents on studying  counterfeit cars. Ferrari had previously asked to destroy that car, but  the Maranello company at the end has lost the cause.

Despite some events are not definitely set yet, we already have a good number of appointments in Bryan's Events List. There is the Ferrari annual experience in Oregon for July 11-17th, 2021 and some other appointments from local Ferrari Clubs... There are many  auctions (many online) even if the calendar is not yet complete... There  are F1 events: some are still pending, but majority of them is  confirmed.  So have a look: Bryan's List can already be a source for car lovers ideas... 

Ferrari   f1 Team has already decided the name of the car for the new   racing year. The car will be called SF21, a very simple name, stressing   the transition to 2022. It will be certainly partially a "frozen" car,  the same chassis as 2020. The dynamic instead will be largely modified.   As the team claimed at the end of the 2020, the next goal is to be one   of the first three teams in the 2021 F1 championship. 

A 1998 Ferrari F355 Spider that belonged to and was customized by NBA  legend Shaquille O’Neal was recently sold in an online auction. This is  a very special car: this model has a significant amount of extra  seating room to fit the 7’2” 300-lb-plus NBA champion’s body . The fuel  tank was relocated and the soft top deleted to make way for aftermarket racing seats big enough to swaddle the car’s XXL driver. 

Mark  your calendar for July 11-17th, 2021 to spend a week with friends and Ferraris.  Portland and Oregon will host the Annual FCA experience 2021.  The 2020 edition was cancelled and moved to 2022 due to pandemic. This year the event is going to be bigger and to last longer. It will be an entire week for Ferrari lovers and owners to spend  driving through Oregon roads or enjoying many different outdoor and  indoor activities, all related to the Prancing Horse and beautiful  Oregon territory. 

Barrett-Jackson, the Phoenix area's largest car collector auction, has postponed its  January auction until March due to the pandemic and also  Scottsdale-based Russo & Steele will host an invitation-only auction in March, according to company websites. Others are adjusting plans, too. California-based top selller Gooding & Company will  hold its auction online in January. Worldwide Auctioneers will hold its auction at  its headquarters in Indiana and online. 

In Scottsdale there will be RM Sotheby's in a live-streamed auction in January with limited attendance and also Bonhams.    

Next  season could see Ferrari among the three fastest teams in F1. Team  principal Mattia Binotto sees no reason why the red cars cannot return  to theire historical position as a regular top three team. Binotto said  it is mindful that complexities of F1’s 2021 “token system” (every team  can develop its system following different rules) could hand an  advantage to competitors like Racing Point (to be rebranded as Aston  Martin) and AlphaTauri, teams with “unlimited tokens”.

F1  teams for 2021 are almost all set up. Sergio Perez will join Red Bull,  instead of Alex Albon and Yuki Tusnoda announced to partner Pierre Gasly  at AlphaTauri the only remaining space  is the second Mercedes seat,  but an announcement confirming Lewis Hamilton's new contract is expected  soon, especially now after Toto Wolff, just announced the extension of  his Mercedes contract for three more years.  

Verstappen  (Red Bull) won the last race of F1 during the season finale in Abu  Dhabi. On the podium also Bottas (Mercedes) and his teammate and 2020  World Champion Hamilton. Most of the teams - as Mercedes- decided to turn down the power for the last race due to some general concerns  about the MGU-K power units failures reported as “end of their life”  situation. Fastest lap for Ricciardo (last race with Renault). 

Third  place for McLaren - as constructor - able to steal at the very end the   position from Racing Point thanks to its pilots (Sainz and Norris)  last performance.   

Italian  medias say Apple Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri and former Chief  Design Officer Jony Ive are reportedly candidates to be Ferrari's next CEO. But more likely the position colud be covered by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Mike Manley. Former Ferrari CEO Louis Camilleri departed  the company last week citing personal reasons. Additionally, former Vodafone CEO Vittorio Colao was allegedly in the running for the  position, but he has already denied, calling the claim "groundless." 

Ferrari  chief executive Louis Camilleri announced his retirement  from every  single position inside the company "for personal reasons with immediate  effect".

Chairman  John Elkann will  be act as interim chief executive until a replacement  is found.  Camilleri announced also his retirement from Philip Morris.

In one of the most chaotic  F1 GP of this year, Sergio Perez (Racing Point) won the second race scheduled in Bahrain. Second place  for Esteban Ocon (Renault) and third place for Lance Stroll (Racing Point). Race was dominated by George Russel (on Mercedes, replacing  Hamilton out for Covid). Started as 2nd, the young  British driver was able to reach the first place twice, recording also the fastest lap. But a Mercedes team error during a pit stop, and then a  puncture forced him to finish 9th.

Out from (almost) the beginning Leclerc (Ferrari) after an  accident with Perez. In the  same accident out also Verstappen (Red  Bull).   

Mick Schumacher won in Bahrain the F2 2020 Championship. The son of seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher beat fellow Ferrari Driver  Academy member Callum Ilott after a dramatic final race in Bahrain. The race was chaotic with Schumacher down to 19th place and Ilott not able to go faster than 11th place. At the end Mick conquered the title thanks to previous incredible victories all over this year. In 2021 the young Schumacher will compete in F1 with the American Haas powered by Ferrari.